The Iron Maiden's Prayer
by Jada Flame
Summary: *Chapter 3 up* Rated for future chapters; subject to change. Will eventually contain SLASH. Two unlikely companions set out on an adventure to destroy Evil and find each other...
1. prologue

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Diablo II in any way shape or form except for the expansion CD that I got for Christmas.  
  
WARNINGS: This story will eventually contain SLASH. That means m/m relationships. If you don't like that, go read 'To The Gates of Hell' by Qualinesti. Flames will be laughed at.  
  
AN: Dedicated to two people: Qualinesti, for their wonderful story 'To The Gates of Hell', which got me hooked on this fandom in the first place; and Kip-chan, for showing interest in me and my writings at a time when I needed it most. Thanks a lot, and I'm working on the WL fic. Is Brad/Wayne okay? ^_~  
  
********  
  
The Iron Maiden's Prayer  
  
By Jada Flame  
  
********  
  
It was raining. Again.  
  
Indo shivered and drew his cloak a bit closer to his body. Not that the sopping piece of fabric held any warmth, but more out of habit and for the peace of mind that he was doing all he could, short of tearing his waterproof pack open and draping it over his head.  
  
*But then my bow would get wet,* Indo thought with a humorless grin, *and how am I supposed to be the bane of demons without that?*  
  
He slogged on through the tall grass, rain softened dirt sucking at his thin leather footwear and threatening to mire him in the midst of the bog. Halting under the damp shelter of one of the sparse trees that dotted the landscape, Indo set his bow bag against the trunk. He wrung water first out of his cloak, then out of his hair, long strands slapping wetly against his cheek.  
  
Satisfied for the moment, Indo leaned against the tree and allowed himself a moment's rest from his journey. His eyes drooped shut and he slid down the tree, breathing deep and even.  
  
********  
  
"All right, FIRE!"  
  
The wave of arrows thudded into the lead row of Brutes. With varied animalistic grunts and cries, they fell or attempted to flee, only getting pushed back into arrow range by the tide of charging creatures behind them.  
  
Kashya smiled tightly amid her shouted orders. *The battle is going well,* she thought. Her Rogues were aiming well, felling most of the beasts that were hit. A flash of blue out of the corner of her eye signaled Akara's return to the battle from her tent, where she dashed for potions when her mana had run low. Kashya noticed a row of the bright blue bottles hanging from the priestess' belt as she turned to fire another volley of arrows into the fray.  
  
A Glacial Spike roared ahead of her arrows and froze a Brute, which shattered with the impact of Kashya's projectile. In the lulls between arrow firings, Charsi roared into battle, swinging her smithing hammer with a passion normally associated with her metalworking. Demor, a recently arrived warrior who had been with them about a week, joined her, swinging a sword that seemed to be an extension of his armor plated body. He was a Piladian or Pilidain or something like that. Neither he nor Kashya being the talking type, they hadn't gotten to know each other beyond names.  
  
She notched another arrow and paused to let Demor swing at another Brute. With surprising agility, it moved out of range of the strike, twisting to let its great arm swing down in a deadly arc towards the warrior. In the split second before the swing connected, a halo of what appeared to be shards of light sparkled into being around the fighter's body. Thinking this was a last-ditch protective shield to save himself, Kashya was surprised to see Demor stagger under the blow. She was even more astonished, however, when the Brute reeled back in a flash of light, roared in pain, and fell over dead with small, knife-like wounds all over its body. Kashya had no time to ponder the death, because at that moment the leader of the small army rose up behind his troops.  
  
Treehead Woodfist.  
  
She barely had time to shout a warning before Treehead moved with impossible speed over to Demor and struck a crushing blow on the warrior's torso, which was still surrounded by the light shards. The armor crumpled inward like so much paper, but Demor looked to be conscious and mostly unhurt. The same could not be said for Treehead, however.  
  
He was stronger than the other Brutes; that was apparent. Demor's badly dented breastplate could attest to that. But the warrior's aura had, if possible, produced an even bigger flash at Treehead's hit, which in turn had produced bigger payback. Treehead was sent reeling backwards several feet to crash into a Brute corpse, deep wounds sprouting all over his body. He staggered, glanced at his army, which had been decimated during the battle, and fled.  
  
Demor gulped a healing potion from his belt, shouted that he was going to finish Treehead off, and removed his breastplate before wading through the carnage after the retreating leader. He paused to slice through the last standing Brute and disappeared into the marsh. The rain began to fall.  
  
********  
  
Demor blinked water out of his eyes as he ran after Treehead. His battle rage was beginning to fade, but he wasn't letting Treehead escape. The Brute had hurt him too badly for that. With the help of his Vigor aura, he closed the distance on Treehead.  
  
********  
  
Indo stirred under his tree. A low rumble had awakened him. *Probably thunder…* He prepared to go back to sleep.  
  
********  
  
A smirk wound its way onto Demor's face as Treehead barreled towards his cranium's namesake. *Probably doesn't even realize that sapling's there…* He decided to let the Brute stun himself on the tree, and then finish him off. His thoughts ground to a halt when he noticed something under the tree… something human-shaped. *What in the name of the Light…* He shouted a warning, too late.  
  
********  
  
Indo opened his eyes in time to see Treehead's bulk bearing down on him a split second before he was knocked from under the tree to land in a puddle, head banging against the ground, arm and leg swinging brokenly, his world exploding into a universe of pain. He swam in and out of blackness long enough to feel someone pick him up from the water. He thought he heard shouting, but it was all muddled in his head. As the water dripped from the sky onto his face, his last thought before the blessedly numb darkness took him was of how much he hated the rain… 


	2. first impressions

AN: I'm so sorry that I didn't update for so long. I was planning for this chapter to be a whole lot longer than it turned out to be, but so much time has gone by since I first posted that I figured I might as well post what I have. So enjoy, if you can. Oh, and by the way, whoever reviewed asking me not to contaminate this fandom with slash, that honor isn't mine. I seem to remember reading a Cain/Wanderer fic a while back; I don't know if it's still up.  
  
Disclaimer/Warning: See part one.  
  
*************  
  
Clang. clang. clang.  
  
Indo floated back to consciousness. For a long moment he lay with his eyes closed, attempting to ward off a splitting pain in his head.  
  
Clang. clang. clang.  
  
The surface beneath him felt cushioned, but prickly. *A straw-stuffed mattress, then.* he thought. That meant that he was somewhere out of the wilderness, and from what sounded like a blacksmith at work, somewhere with people.  
  
A rustle of cloth sounded from a few feet away, and a man's voice spoke.  
  
"How is he?"  
  
When a woman's voice answered the man from not more than a foot away from Indo's head, he couldn't help but jump slightly.  
  
"Is he alright?" The man again, sounding anxious.  
  
"I think he's regaining consciousness- can you hear us?" The woman's voice was closer now. Indo forced his eyes open with an effort and found himself staring at an old, wizened, papery-thin shell of a Sorceress, judging by the aura of mana that hung about her and the odd golden glint in her eye (peculiar to the Zann Esu clan of the East).  
  
"Can you hear me? Do you understand me?" Her words were accompanied by a soft shake of the shoulder that set the tent space spinning.  
  
"Uhh." Indo closed his eyes briefly against the waves of nausea roiling in his stomach and settled for a quick nod in response. This turned out to be a bad idea upon opening his eyes, as the room was now spinning faster, whirling into a jumbled blur of color that faded only when the Sorceress placed her hand on his forehead and muttered some words under her breath. The room actually held its stationary position when Indo moved his head again and he mumbled his thanks.  
  
"Wh- where am I?"  
  
"You are in the temporary home of the Rogues; I am Akara, High Priestess of the Sisterhood of the Sightless Eye and leader of this encampment. You are welcome here for as long as you need."  
  
Indo closed his eyes and lay motionless for a few moments longer. Eyes still closed he began to speak. "The last thing I remember is some. animal thing running me over. How-"  
  
At that moment the tent flaps burst open, revealing a woman clad in metal plates and a red cloth sun-shield draped over her head.  
  
"Akara, my scouts have just returned- only two of them, the rest are. gone- and they have found a matter of. some importance; if you could come outside.? They are both conscious, but one is rather poorly, in the way of several deep arrow wounds. They also wish to report their findings to you directly."  
  
Akara was on her feet in an instant, moving with a quickness surprising for one of such seeming old age. "Forgive me, gentlemen, but this matter requires my immediate attention." She swept outside. Voices drifted in, mixing together into a confusing swirl of sound. Indo's attention floated over to the man still standing in a corner.  
  
"What do you do here?"  
  
The man started, eyes flashing for a brief instant, then moved forward to claim Akara's former chair. "Me? I am but a traveling warrior, here to seek out the evil in this land and destroy it. Am I wrong to assume that you are here for the same purpose?"  
  
"No, that is the reason for my being here." A pause. "Forgive me, I do not know your name."  
  
"I am known as Demor. Former Holy Knight of the First Order of the Zakarum and Protector of the Word."  
  
This last was spoken in a low tone, almost as an afterthought, and subsequently took a few moments to sink into Indo's muddled brain. "So you're a." The full implications of the words hit him.  
  
"Paladin!" he hissed through clenched teeth, and wrenched himself as far away from the other man as he could get. "I'll thank you to keep your holy filth away from me!"  
  
The knight looked vaguely hurt. "What harm have I done you?"  
  
"Do not pretend you know nothing of your kind's hatred of those not followers of your faith. If you knew what I am, I doubt highly that I would still be lying here unharmed." Indo allowed himself the luxury of glaring for a few more moments. "Now, leave me in peace."  
  
The other man closed his eyes and bit his lip before exhaling loudly through his teeth, which stood out sharply against the dark of his skin as the air hissed through them.  
  
"How many times must I say it? Or are you waiting for me to get down on my knees and worship you, Your Holy Righteousness?" A venom-tinged voice turned the title into a curse.  
  
More seconds passed, until finally, a response. "Akara. does not want you to be left alone in your condition. As she is the closest thing to a true healer this camp has-"  
  
"And what is your definition of a 'true healer'? One who has studied under your finest preachers and no other? One who is 'truly bathed in the glory of the Light'?" Indo had been feeling steadily stronger since Akara had laid her hand on his head, and he took his heated tone of voice as an opportunity to swing his legs over the side of the small cot and rise to his feet. He noted, with an abstract sort of pleasure, that he felt nearly as well in body as he had been before that blasted animal demon had barreled him over.  
  
The Paladin regarded him with detached worry. "You're in no state to be up and about; now lie back down before I have to call Akara back in."  
  
"Or what, Paladin? You'll preach to me about how my actions will send me straight into the arms of the Three? You'll get out your holy water and toss it at me in hopes that it will burn? You'll call upon your 'True Light' and smite me from the heavens?" Indo noted with grim satisfaction that the knight's face was beginning to darken and went in for the kill. "I know, you'll call on your army of holy brethren and begin a holy crusade to wipe out the evil in my soul. Oh, wait, you can't do that because there's not so much unity in the Holy Order now, is there? What's the matter? Religion and chivalry not working out the way they're supposed to?"  
  
The Paladin snapped. "You can insult me, you can insult my ancestors, you can curse my entire existence, but you will not make light of the problems of the Zakarum. If next we meet and you should be in danger, may the Light forbid that I help you again!"  
  
Indo laughed, a high, piercing sound that rang oddly in the confines of the tent. "And just what help do you think you have given me, O Mighty One?"  
  
"And just who do you think brought you here to this camp? I have saved your life, stranger. Next time, I will leave you to die in the wilderness." The knight stood fuming for a time before regaining marginal control over his emotions. "Now excuse me, I must look into this matter of Kashya's." And with a swish of tent flaps, the knight was gone, leaving an outraged Indo in his wake.  
  
*************** AN: Yes, if you noticed, I skipped the Den of Evil quest. I figured that Demor has been at the encampment long enough to have completed that portion of the game. 


	3. much ado about items

AN: Apologies for lateness. That's about all. Oh, and Charsi's OOC-ness will be dealt with in a later chapter.  
  
Warnings/Disclaimers: See part one.  
  
**********  
  
*Perhaps my grandsire was right*, reflected Indo. *As he said, 'When dealing with paladins, it is infinitely simpler to simply do away with them.'*  
  
On the other hand, his aging mentor was the one who had drilled over and over into Indo's young brain the importance of returning favors (and injuries) wound for wound, eye for eye, life for life. So if Indo was feeling not at all disposed towards blaming himself, he could always rationalize that it was his grandsire's fault he was here in the first place.  
  
This line of thought was inspired courtesy of the flaming arrows currently whizzing past, and occasionally embedding themselves in, the weak cover of the single tree Indo was crouched behind. The paladin (standing, incidentally, entirely too close for the comfort of the small portion of Indo's mind still able to ponder such inconveniences) was keeping a steady rain of shining energy hailing down on the ever-present walking corpses. *Knock one down, five more take their place.*  
  
Indo's bow was at the ready, arrow notched; deciding that it was now in the momentary lull of arrow fire or never, he leapt from behind his shelter.  
  
***********  
  
::Twenty-four hours earlier::  
  
The first thing Indo noticed as he stepped out of the tent was the over whelming stench of blood. He reflexively brought a hand to his face in an attempt to quiet the stinging in his nasal passages and winced. Scowling at his involuntary reaction to such a familiar scent, Indo sought out the source. The smell seemed to emanate from a gathering of people huddled next to a large fire; the knight was among their number. Deciding he definitely did not want to be anywhere near the paladin, Indo set out in the direction of the clanging that had woken him.  
  
He found it in the form of a young woman squinting critically at the edge of a blade that still held a faint red glow of heat. Even as he approached, she replaced the dagger on her anvil and raised her hammer. One short clang, one last check, and with a nod of approval she dropped the dagger into a bucket of water, causing a sharp hiss.  
  
"Hello."  
  
She whirled, short blonde hair whipping around to smack her lightly on the cheek. Indo took an involuntary step back; apparently she appeared much shorter than she was while at range or working over her anvil. Heavily muscled biceps flexed for a long moment- obviously part barbarian, and Indo wondered if she had retained any of the fabled savagery of that race, and if so, was he to be torn apart now with no warning- and suddenly her whole demeanor softened, body relaxing, an embarrassed flush coming to her cheeks.  
  
"I'm awful sorry, sir, you just startled me. I tend to get wrapped up in my work- I didn't scare you too bad, did I? Sometimes they run screaming. Oh, are you that stranger Demor brought in from the Blood Moor?"  
  
Great. Now the damned locale had an appropriately forbidding name. Indo realized the woman was waiting for an answer.  
  
"Er. Yes? I mean, I think so," he offered.  
  
"It's real good to see you up- the whole camp was real worried about you- Akara wasn't sure if you were going to pull through; Demor hardly left your side, I mean, you were out for two days- Hey, by the way, what's your name? Nobody knows."  
  
The mentality of a child of fifteen. Indo blinked as he processed the sudden shift in topic and automatically stammered out, "My- my name is Indo."  
  
"Indo, hm? From where? Oh, never mind, that's none of my business." She ran an appraising eye over his body, then held out her hand. "I'm the blacksmith, Charsi. Pleasure to meet you."  
  
Getting over his confusion, Indo grasped the proffered hand (noting idly that Charsi stood more than a head taller than him) and shook it, reciting the well-remembered words of his grandsire's favorite greeting. "'Equally met, thankfully in friendship and not in battle.'"  
  
She giggled, an odd sound coming from such a large body. "Aren't you the gentleman? I think we're going to get along really good. There's not that many people to talk to here- Warriv's nice, I like hearing his stories- but Akara's always reading some old scroll, Kashya's too busy worrying about her troops, and the rogues are too busy worrying about demons and such." Charsi's mood darkened. "And don't even get me started on Gheed. I'm trying to run my little shop here, and he's always trying to tell me to raise my prices when I sell stuff or lower them to buy- it drives me nuts! I think my prices are just fine, unless the customer wants to be cheated. And then he has the nerve to charge overly inflated prices for magic items that he won't even identify until they've been bought and the money's in his purse!"  
  
Speaking of equipment. Indo was gripped by a sudden dread.  
  
"Tell me, Charsi. You said they found me out in the wilderness." His voice failed for a second before he could continue. "What about my bow? Did they find my bow?"  
  
Charsi bit her lip and picked a leather bag up from next to her forge. Wordlessly, she handed it to Indo, who took a deep breath and held it before exhaling heavily as he saw the contents of the sack.  
  
The bow was twisted and cracked, splinters poking out where the wood had split. The string was frayed; the arrows were in pieces; the decorative paint was smeared. This last remnant of his grandsire's was gone, just as the old man's body was. Indo wrapped the shards back into the leather bag reverently.  
  
Charsi was talking again. "I'm so sorry! They wanted me to fix it, but I don't know how to fix bows, but I tried anyway and I just ended up splitting it farther, and I'm so sooo-rrrrry-eeeeeee." She trailed off in tears, hiccupping.  
  
Indo had been staring at the ruined weapon, face impassive. Now he looked up, confused, and tried to adopt a comforting manner. "No, no, it's- it's not your fault. I'm sure you tried your hardest. I'll just have to get a new bow."  
  
"But it was *your* bow!" Charsi flung herself at Indo and wrapped her arms around his waist. Indo awkwardly patted her on the back while she sobbed. "I'm so sorry, I'll do anything to make it up to you, *anything*-"  
  
"No, it's *fine*-"  
  
"No, it *isn't*, you have to let me do something! At least let me give you a new bow!"  
  
Indo caved. "Oh, all right."  
  
Charsi brightened and turned to the wall of her wooden shelter, where a selection of bows that Indo hadn't noticed was hanging. "I know these aren't anywhere near as good as the one you had, but a couple of these are magical. Here, this one." She pulled a bow off the wall and handed it to Indo.  
  
He stared at the weapon perplexedly. "What do you mean, it's magic?"  
  
"It'll add to your attributes, like strength or stamina. Magic weapons might also add something to the power of your attacks. This one, for example, is a Short Bow of Flame. It'll, um, add fire energy to your arrows as you pull the string back, so when the arrow hits, it'll burn the enemy as well. See these markings?" Charsi ran her finger along the center of the bow. "These runes'll tell you what kind of magic the item has, if you can read them. I have a translation sheet somewhere, you can use it until you learn the runes, they're pretty easy to read once you know what you're looking for." She was rummaging through a sheaf of papers when a large meaty hand clamped onto Indo's shoulder.  
  
He whirled, gripping the wrist and twisting it around so that the owner of the arm found it pinned uncomfortably behind his back in less than a second. Indo made a mental note to thank Akara for her miraculous healing powers before he left.  
  
Indo was mildly shocked to find a short, squashy bundle of faded finery instead of the warrior he was expecting. He muttered a quiet curse and released the man's arm with a slight shove. The man sputtered briefly and regained his composure.  
  
"Good day to you partner! Gheed, master merchant and proprietor extraordinaire at your service. I see you are a warrior, and a damn strong one too, if my wrist is any indication. Let me give you some advice, friend, I-"  
  
The fat merchant had been reciting his spiel with his eyes closed, but at this point they flashed open for a second and settled onto Indo's face. Gheed faltered, his previously well-oiled words stumbling over themselves as he lapsed into silence, a venomous look of pure hatred flashing across his features; Indo tensed, anticipating an attack-  
  
A harsh shove sent Gheed sprawling. Charsi stood above him with all the terrible glory of an avenging angel, her face livid and flushed.  
  
"You!" she spat, and there was no trace of the childish naïveté that had marked her interrupted conversation with Indo. "I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times, none of YOUR sales will be conducted or propositioned in any way, shape, form or fashion in MY section of this camp!" Spittle sprayed from her lips and spattered across the fallen merchant.  
  
Gheed made a show of wiping his face and clambered to his feet, making a show of wiping the mud from his robes. Adopting a smile nearly as greasy as his hair, he began wheedling in an even oilier tone than before.  
  
"My dear girl, I see you've met our nameless traveling warrior, and as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted-" here he shot a glare at Charsi- "what a warrior he is! I see you two have formed a friendship of sorts. Charsi, Charsi, Charsi, I know you're the sort of girl who doesn't accept anything but the best for her friends. Now, I'm not trying to insult or demean you, but the sad truth is that the magical equipment you sell is not all it could be." A sneering grin betrayed the true feelings behind the words as Gheed fixed his oily gaze on Indo.  
  
"My friend, wouldn't you rather have an Amber Skull Cap than an Ocher one? Quilted Armor of the Mammoth rather than the same of the Fox? Or even-" Gheed's eyes flicked to the bow still held in Indo's hand- "or even a rare bow rather than just a plain magical one? For a purely nominal fee all this can be yours! What do you say?"  
  
A strong voice cut off Indo's response. "He says that his presence is requested in Akara's tent and that you should take your lies elsewhere." Demor moved out from behind one of the tents, glaring at Gheed, who squeaked and scuttled away. Indo turned on the knight.  
  
"You! Don't profess to put words in my mouth, paladin!"  
  
"I merely stated the truth, stranger." The paladin stressed the last word. "Hello, Charsi." He nodded to the blacksmith, then turned to Indo. "This way." He strode off.  
  
Indo followed reluctantly.  
  
************* AN: I know I didn't get this out sooner, and I probably should have, and all I can say is, I'm sorry. I don't know when this will be updated next, because I haven't even started writing the next chapter yet, but it isn't forgotten or abandoned. Please review, because reviews always inspire me to work faster! 


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